Chessington make substantial progress on construction of their 2021 drop tower rumoured to be called ‘Croc Drop’!

Chessington World of Adventures make significant headway with the construction of their brand new drop tower for 2021 - project name 'Croc Drop'!

It was on the 3rd of November 2019 that an era of Egyption themed terror and thrills finally concluded as Chessington World of Adventures officially closed what was considered by many to be one of the resort’s most iconic flat rides – their legendary Huss Top SpinRameses Revenge!

Originally opening at the resort back in June of 1995, Rameses Revenge would prove an instant hit with thrill seekers and the public alike and would continue to rain terror with great success upon all who rode it leaving a lasting legacy that would almost certainly be difficult to succeed!

But as Chessington and Merlin well knew, times were changing and this therefore meant that the ride’s days at the resort were numbered.

It was in late 2018 that the decision was finally made that Rameses Revenge should be removed at the end of the 2019 season in favour of a brand new and far more modern 2021 addition – A drop tower centered around the Egyptian Crocodile God Sebek!

Plans for the thrilling new addition were therefore revealed and following the final operational day of it’s predecessor the construction walls went up and work officially began to remove Rameses Revenge from the resort in order to make way for Chessington’s brand new 2021 addition.

Official plans submitted for approval prior to the commencement of construction at the resort.

‘Croc Drop’ will stand at 25.6 meters tall and will operate a 16 seat gondola which will climb to the top of the tower before dropping thrill seekers into the gaping mouth of Sebek himself!

The crocodile head themeing structure will stand at approximately 12.1 meters tall and will be 12.5 meters in width meaning that the head alone will take up nearly half of the height of the ride itself overall.

The addition of special effects should also give for a completely different dimension further enhancing the ride experience overall. 

It’s definitely fair to say that when this new ride is complete and ready to snap riders up it will probably make one of the most unique and heavily themed thrill ride additions to be added to the resort in the last decade.

But what of construction? How much progress has been made on this new addition since groundworks first commenced back at the start of 2020?

After seeing some recent photos shared to the Facebook group Merlin Annual Passholders Group by group member Luke Froude it’s fair to say that construction on the station building and the theming structure are very nearly nearing completion!

Looking at the below photos shared yesterday by Luke we can already see that not only has the structure itself nearly completed installation, however additional theming and artwork have also begun installation too.

Image Credit; Luke Froude of Merlin Annual Passholders Group.

With 2021 now just around the corner (thank goodness haha!) and with works progressing extremely steadily onsite we don’t feel it will be too long before installation of the ride itself commences and final touches are put into place.

The ride itself has been estimated to be opening on the first day of the 2021 season, however as far as we are aware this is yet to be confirmed by Chessington themselves.

Regardless we are just as eager as everyone else to see this fantastic new addition start testing which therefore means that as soon as the ride has been fully installed and testing begins we will be sure to share with you all over on our official Facebook page!

We would like to thank Luke for allowing us to use these fantastic shots in order to give you all an update and as such we will keep you all posted as the works progress and the project nears completion hopefully no later than early 2021 at the latest.

What are your thoughts on this brand new addition? Are you as excited for this as we are? Let us know what you think of ‘Croc Drop’ in the comments below?